Myopia Management

Myopia, also known as near sightedness, affects millions of children worldwide. It occurs when the eye grows too long, causing light to focus in front of the retina instead of directly on it. This results in blurry distance vision, which can make it challenging for children to see the board at school, play sports, and enjoy outdoor activities. While myopia can be corrected with glasses or contact lenses, it is essential to manage the condition in young children to prevent it from progressing and potentially leading to serious eye conditions later in life. Here we will take a look at what you can do to either prevent it or at least keep it to a minimum. The younger the child, the more chance that these changes in activity will minimise their myopic progression. 

 

Time outdoors 

It sounds too good to be true, but time spent outdoors has been clearly shown to prevent or delay myopia. How this works is not so clear, though. It is not simply because the child is not reading as, even if they read outside, they still get a lot of benefit. Nor is it about exercise – it doesn’t make any difference. It seems most likely that sunlight is the key. Something within sunlight stimulates growth of the eye at the correct rate. There are other potential factors such as a connection between lower amounts of fields or greenery in urban environments and higher levels of myopia.  

 

What do you need to do? 

1. Try to get your child to spend two hours each day outside. This sounds a lot but for young children, for whom this is most important, most of this will be achieved already at school. At weekends and holidays family outings and local parks will help pass the time outside. 

1. Sun protection is important. Children’s eyes are very vulnerable to UV light and so quality UV400 sunglasses are essential. So is a hat and all the usual sun protection. This will not affect their myopia management. 

1. Physical activity. This does not seem to have a bearing on myopic progression but is great for the child’s all-round development so, while they are outside, get them chasing that ball. 

 

 

Screens 

There is no getting away from screens in the modern world. They are vital at school, home and children love them. But you were right – they are not good for the eyes. Screen time has been shown to be linked to development of myopia in children and teens. It also causes dry eyes, digital eye strain and possibly postural problems.  

 

Why? 

Children and adults alike appear to hold screens closer to them. This requires increased focussing effort from the eyes which leads to strain. The eyes blink less frequently when looking at screens leading to dry eyes which is not healthy and the tracking system which coordinates eye movements and focussing does not work as well as it should.  

 

You can’t stop them using their screens 

You can limit it to a reasonable amount of time, though. The World Health Organisation recommends: 

Up to two years old – no screen time. This allows for play, language development, attention skills and learning. All of which are held back by screen time. 

From 2 – 4 Up to 1 hour screen time a day, ideally watching with a parent. This allows for improved language skills, learning, social skills and gives plenty of time to play outdoors. 

From 5 – 7 up to 2 hours per day maximum but not before bedtime. 

 

Other thing that you can do to help 

1. The elbow rule: keep an elbow-to-hand distance away from books and screens to avoid them being too close to the eyes. 

1. The 20/20/20 rule: take regular breaks from reading to reduce demand on the visual system. Every twenty minutes encourage them to look at something over 20 feet away for 20 seconds.  

1. The two-hour rule: try to limit leisure screen time (outside of schoolwork) to two hours per day in school-aged children. 

 

If you follow these guidelines, then there is a chance that your child will not develop myopia. However, there are other factors which you cannot do anything about. If one or both parents are myopic then there is a significantly increased chance that the child will follow. Ethnicity plays a part, too.  

If your child becomes myopic, we strongly recommend you look at myopia management to limit the progression and leave them with a significantly lower prescription in adulthood.  

 

Conclusion 

In conclusion, while there is no guaranteed way to prevent myopia in childhood, there are several things parents can do to reduce the risk of their children developing the condition. Encouraging outdoor time, healthy habits, using proper lighting and seating, scheduling regular eye exams, and considering myopia control treatments can all help reduce the risk of myopia and promote healthy eyesight in children. 

 

Here are some links to articles which you might find interesting –

Great Ormond Street Hospital advice

Royal National Institute For The Blind advice on high myopia

An excellent website with advice on myopia management if your child becomes short sighted

You might like to take a look at our orthokeratology page as this is a proven technique for myopia management.

We are here for you if you need any advice or help with your eyesight or anything related such as designer glasses, orthokeratology etc. Contact Bellamy Eyecare opticians in Leicester and Irthlingborough and we will be delighted to help you. You might like to read the kind things that our clients have written about us here.